Insufficiency
by Usami
Summary: In the end, that was all it came down to. He just wasn't fast enough, or brave enough, or strong enough.


****So here's some background for this story: Sometime after watching the second movie and I fell in love with _Kung Fu Panda_, I wanted to write a story about Crane, who somehow became my favorite character in the franchise. I had some time to kill during the San Diego Comic Con in July while waiting for the Nickelodeon panel where they would show some stuff about the _Kung Fu Panda_ series, so I tried out one of the story ideas I had. But I never got around to _do _anything with it until recently, when I decided to polish up some old stories that I wrote but never finished. And, now that it's finished, I thought, "...Well, I'm not doing anything else with it." So I'm posting it here.

I guess you guys didn't _really_ need to know that, but I thought I'd explain why I'm putting up a story about the first movie so late in the game. Haha...anyway, enjoy!

**Insufficiency**

Monkey was the first to fall.

Shocked and concerned for their teammate, they didn't see Tai Lung strike again until Viper hit the ground next.

They surged forward then, trying to land a blow on the snow leopard. But Tai Lung was stronger, faster than even Mantis who also fell, motionless.

Without missing a beat, Tai Lung moved for his next attack, aimed at Tigress. Crane intercepted, deflecting the blow as best he could before swinging back to deliver a strike of his own. But Tai Lung swiftly dodged and retaliated; before the bird even realized what was happening, a wave of needles attacked his body and he couldn't move. He fell to the ground, his rice hat landing lightly beside him.

No matter how hard he tried, Crane found himself unable to move any part of his body. He could barely breathe – even his lungs limited in their abilities by the paralyzing attack Tai Lung used on them. He could only watch in disbelief and horror as even Tigress fell, powerless against the snow leopard.

With a slow exhale, Tai Lung chuckled; a low, sinister sound that would have made Crane shudder if he was able. The snow leopard then began slowly circling around them, stepping over them as his tail swished while he thought.

"So…" Tai Lung drawled, "this is the best Shifu has done over the years?" He shook his head. "How disappointing. I can only hope the so-called Dragon Warrior – this _Po_ – will be more of a challenge."

A dense ball of dread formed in Crane's stomach as he tried to imagine Po against Tai Lung. It just seemed…impossible.

"But what to do now…?" Tai Lung murmured to himself, stroking his chin. "It would be easy to _kill_ you all right now, wouldn't it?"

Golden eyes roamed over the immobilized warriors, calculating. Then, as his gaze settled on Crane, he smirked.

Crane's eyes shifted frantically as Tai Lung approached, taking his own sweet time knowing that Crane couldn't move. The bird's mind raced, and even his slowed heart pounded furiously when Tai Lung stood before him, crushing his rice hat beneath his foot.

Tai Lung moved, quicker than the eye, and suddenly Crane felt his body relax. He gasped for breath, but it was short-lived before he found Tai Lung's paw wrapped tightly around his neck. He was forced to meet the leopard's fierce golden eyes, and a tremor passed throughout his body.

Sensing this, Tai Lung's smirk deepened. "So you finally understand what you're up against?" he asked. "You finally understand who I am?" He chuckled again, and Crane felt sharp tips digging into his flesh.

Without warning, Tai Lung released him, harshly throwing him back against the ground. His wing to his throat, Crane looked up as the leopard stood with his back facing him.

"Take the others back to the palace," Tai Lung said, his voice hard and cold. Glancing back at the water fowl, he smirked again. "And you'd best try to make it there before I do." With that, Tai Lung jumped up and was gone.

Crane lay there for a moment, breathing heavily. Part of him thought to go after the snow leopard, to try once again to stop him. But he remained where he was, imagining that there was no point. If the five of them together couldn't stop Tai Lung, then what chance did he have alone?

But still…could he have done something more? Could he have still done something…different that would have changed the outcome?

Maybe…maybe he _should_ have tried. If he could have only tried, if he had just done _something_…but he hadn't, so he didn't know if it he would have made any difference. And he would never find out.

Shaking his head, Crane slowly got to his feet. He paused, forced to wait and search for his balance as his body shook. Whether it was because of the after-effects of the nerve attack or residual fear, he wasn't sure, but he did his best to ignore it as he glanced at the other fallen warriors.

He felt their gazes on him, watching him as he gathered them all together. He knew how aware they were of what was happening, despite their paralyzed state. Having been that way himself, he knew…he knew how much they could hear, see, and understand. And he found the thought rather…unsettling.

Because they saw what he had done – or rather, what he _hadn__'__t_ done – after Tai Lung released him. They witnessed how he had let the snow leopard go, how he didn't attempt to stop him…how he had simply given up.

And as he wondered what any of them would have done in his place – if one of _them_ had been free and _him_ still unable to move – he found that he couldn't face them.

But there was nothing else to do now, for it was too late to find out. All that was left was to get the others back so that maybe Shifu could help them.

It was the only thing Crane could do for them.

But even after arranging them in a way that he thought he could transport them, Crane found himself hesitating. He saw the concern in their eyes, worrying as they watched him. For they knew as well as he did that, even at his full strength, carrying all of them at once was a difficult feat for him. And the most he's ever had to transport them was several feet in the air or a few miles. To carry them across the great distance back to the Jade Palace, in his current state…he just wasn't strong enough.

He sighed wearily. In the end, that was all it came down to. He just wasn't fast enough, or brave enough, or strong enough.

But there was nothing else he could do. So, bracing himself, he grabbed his teammates in his talons and flapped his wings rapidly. Immediately he felt the strain in his muscles, and it took everything he had and more to just get airborne…let alone high enough into the air to fly. More than once he felt himself rapidly losing altitude, and he flapped his wings harder to compensate. His body wavered, but he ignored the pain that coursed through him, calling upon the strength he didn't have to continue on. It was a far cry from his usual graceful flight, and he clumsily fluttered about until he found a rhythm he could work with.

He could sense the eyes of the others on him, watching him underneath their frozen expressions. When his gripped slipped and he tightened his hold, he felt the others somehow tense, possibly worried about how long he could stay inflight.

He shut his eyes for a moment, unable to look at them. Then, from his ragged breathing he managed to rasp out, "I'm sorry…"

But even as he spoke the words, he wasn't exactly sure what he was apologizing for.

The rest of the journey fell into heavy silence; them unable to speak, and him unable to endure their situation. The only sound was his wings furiously pounding the air, and the thundering of his heart as he pushed himself to his limits and beyond.

He only hoped it that, this time, it would be enough.

**The End**


End file.
